Jesus and Violence
One of the most cherished tenets of the Christian religion is the idea of being a good Christian. According to this, a person who believes in Christianity will strive not only to abide by the laws of man as well as those in the Bible, he or she will also have a sense of morality and rules of personal behavior which reflect their religious beliefs. This comes from the teachings of Jesus Christ as they are related in the Bible. Despite the actions of those around him, even those who have betrayed him and mean to kill him, he still advocates for peace and attempts to prevent violence from being performed against those around him.
One such example is in Mark 14:43-50. Soldiers come in to arrest Jesus after he has been betrayed by Judas. It is not enough that they take Jesus into custody, but the soldiers also have to perform vicious acts of violence within the confines of a Jewish temple. It is written that after...
This violent action is related in an almost off-hand manner but when examined, it is truly horrific. Since the soldiers already have Jesus, there is no legitimate reason to harm the slave boy, let alone to remove a body part within a holy temple save to increase the perception that the enemy is acting for the sake of evil beyond their orders by supervisors.
Another version where a slave is senselessly victimized in a very similar way in John 18:10-11. While hiding within yet another temple, Jesus is targeted by the enemy who, rather than harm Jesus physically, instead harms a slave of the priest who is helping Jesus to hide. Simon Peter, after speaking to Jesus, "having a sword, drew it and struck the high priest's slave, and cut off his right ear" (18:10). After this is done, Jesus…
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